Overview  >  Key Actions  >  Program 5: Immigration

PROGRAM 5: IMMIGRATION

Why voters want this •     Republicans keep a narrow trust edge on immigration, 44% to 41%. •     Yet 57% of voters say enforcement has gone too far. •     72% of Republican supporters call immigration very important, and concern among Democrats is up 17 points since 2022.

What the program does

1. Border capacity

Funding for personnel, technology and faster asylum decisions, so cases are settled in months rather than years.

2. Enforcement guardrails

Priorities focused on public safety threats, due process protections, identification and body camera requirements for agents, and limits on enforcement at schools, hospitals and places of worship.

3. Detention standards and public reporting

Enforceable standards for detention conditions, medical care, access to counsel and independent inspection; regular public reports on encounters, processing times, removals, asylum decisions, backlogs and costs.

4. Legal work pathways

More seasonal and sector visas in agriculture, construction and caregiving, with wage enforcement, portability between employers and bans on recruitment fees. This also eases labor shortages that push up prices.

5. Long-term residents

A conditional process, enacted by Congress, for long-settled residents who pass security and background checks, pay applicable fees or taxes, meet residence requirements and comply with the law. People brought here as children are treated separately from adults who arrived on their own.

Implementation principles

Border control, asylum decisions, legal immigration and labor enforcement are connected but distinct functions. Each needs adequate staffing, predictable rules and timely decisions. Avoid treating all noncitizens as one legal category.

Design options

Option	What it means	Trade-off
Security first	Lead with border capacity and faster decisions before guardrails or pathways.	Closes the trust gap; risks losing voters who think enforcement went too far.
Comprehensive package	Pass all five components together.	Most durable; hardest to pass.
Balanced pairs (recommended)	Move each security measure alongside a fairness measure.	Shows both sides something in every bill; a package offering only one side is unlikely to pass or persuade.

Success metrics

Measure	Baseline	Target
Asylum case backlog and average decision time	Years	Months
Compliance with detention standards	Not independently inspected	Inspected and published
Party trust gap on immigration	Republicans +3	Closed or reversed
Employer wage violations in visa programs	Under-enforced	Tracked and falling

Explore the other key actions

Previous: Program 4: Corruption and Accountability: Clean Government and Accountability Act

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All seven key actions

Sources for this page

• Many voters saw midterm election as a rebuke of Trump, NBC News Exit Poll shows (NBC News, November 4, 2026)
• Economy Ranks as Top Issue in Midterms for All Voters (Pew Research Center, October 8, 2026)
• AP Voter Poll: The economy and the state of democracy are voters’ top issues (AP via PBS News, November 3, 2026)
• The Issues Voters Say Matter Most This Midterm (Gallup, October 29, 2026)

 

The 2026 Midterms: What Comes Next. Analysis updated November 8, 2026. Figures from election-day and pre-election surveys; projections may change as counting finishes.